Patricia Gray

Elements of a Short Story
A short story is a work of fiction that can be read in one sitting.

Plot


The chain of related events that take place in a story.
Built around conflict, which is a struggle between opposing forces.



Plot at a Glance
climax

falling action
rising action resolution exposition

Expositiongives the background of the story Rising Actionintroduces complications; builds suspense Climaxthe turning point of the story suspense reaches its peak Falling Action and Resolution

resolves the conflict
usually ties up loose ends

The plot of a short story centers around conflict. Conflict is a struggle between opposing forces.

Complications build the reader’s excitement.

Types of Conflict
•External

-Man v Man
-Man v Nature

-Man v Obstacle or Society
•Internal -Man v Himself

Methods of Characterization
Creating Believable Characters
 

Indirect
– physical appearance

Direct
– the narrator’s direct comments about a character

– speech, thoughts, feelings, or actions of the character – speech, thoughts, feelings, or actions of other characters

Types of Characters •Main or Minor •Protagonist or Antagonist

•Round or Flat
•Dynamic or Static

•*Stereotypes=Stock Characters*

Setting= time and place
-puts the reader in the story by giving the reader the feeling of being in the situation.

-creates atmosphere by the positive or negative feelings
associated with the place.

Point of View or . . .

(Who’s telling this story anyway?)
-the vantage point from which the story is told. -determines how much we, the readers, know about the characters.

1st Person
• Narrator is a character in the story. •Narrator uses first-person pronouns, I, me, my, we, us, our to refer to himself or herself. •Narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of one character and speaks directly to reader.

3rd Person Limited
•Narrator does not participate in action of story.
•Narrator does not refer to himself or herself. •Narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of one character, but readers are able to maintain some emotional distance from the character.

3rd Person Omniscient
•Narrator does not participate in action of story.
•Narrator does not refer to himself or herself. •Narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all characters; readers get insight into several characters.

What is a symbol?

A symbol is a person, a place, an activity, or an object that stands for something beyond itself.

Theme
In literature, theme is a perception about life or human nature that the writer wants to share with the reader. In most cases, the theme is not stated directly but must be inferred. Themes can be revealed by - a story’s title

- key phrases and statements about big ideas
- the ways the characters change and the lessons they learn about life.